Housing or shelter is a basic requirement in human life, and it is a social right for every individual and family.  The article 31 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran asserts the right of every Iranian household to a suitable home. To clarify the term, a home has been defined as a protection against adverse climate conditions; a place that provides peace, security, health and vitality for its residents, which may prove to be effective in creating stability in families and in strengthening the bonding between its members. 

The subject criteria relevant to housing are broad and complex, composed of diverse dimensions. Aside from its physical aspects, the criteria related to the inhabitants of a home directly open the discussions on social, cultural, and economic factors.  

The sustainable housing indices have prominent role in rural development planning  to ensure the sustainability of various dimensions including the social, economic and physical condition of housing. Hence, in order to deliver a plan in the housing sector, an exact definition and analysis of these sustainability indices are necessary.  With regard to the importance of these definitions, this study aims to recognize and analyze the factors affecting the sustainability of rural housing. To achieve this goal, the rural area of Malavi in the township of Poldokhtar has been selected as a case study. The research follows a descriptive-analytic method, and explores correlations using a mixed-method research. The study examines sustainability in different dimensions, based on the data gathered through questionnaires, interviews and field observations. The statistical sample for the research was chosen through accidental sampling among population of the Malavi rural area, consisting of 180 residents. The obtained coefficient from Cochran’s formula is 0/74 percent which indicates the high reliability of the research tool. The obtained results from the analysis of the SPSS software show that the five factors of amenities-welfare, economic, structural endurance, efficiency and harmony with the environment are able to explain 82 percent of the variances in the statistics. The consideration of these factors in the rural housing development planning is necessary. Although all of these factors have eigenvalues ​​greater than unit, the importance and role of the first item (amenities–welfare) explaining 29.85 percent of the cases, is more effective than other factors. Overall, the findings show that the success of housing projects in rural areas is not only affected by factors such as the structural endurance of the building or its amenities, but a combination of factors is effective in achieving sustainability in rural housing developments.